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Mainstream Media AWOL, MIA & DOA in Iran

The revolution will not be televised; it is, however, being blogged and twittered. Almost all media–including cable–was missing in action last weekend. This weekend they are far more present–except for MSNBC. Shamefully, MSNBC and NBC have abandoned any pretense of being in the news business. NBC national is carrying golf and cable is rerunning crime shows. Are there no longer adults at the network–or is that the problem, and they just don’t understand the new technology?

If newspapers used to be “the first draft of history,” they are no longer. They are the third or forth draft. Slow but more reliable and with context and analysis. TV and live coverage gave immediacy to a truly breaking news story–not the constant “Breaking News!” chiron we see scrolling at the bottom of the screen which means nothing. Then the Internet gave the real first shot of news. Often without context or reliable analyses, but fast and impactful. Now, with cell phones and smart phones there is true live blogging and twittering.

The cable stations are reproducing twitters and blogs. They are showing citizen clips posted on YouTube and Face book. The better news aggregating web sites are following in real time–and whether the unrest in Iran is a revolution or civil war, whether it ends with no change or only blood, one question is settled and that is about the Mainstream Media. They are out to lunch and out of touch with both the real breaking news and the next generation.
2009 Jonathan Dobrerwww.Dobrer.com